Gatherer
"Gatherer" was a highly-accomplished Dark Hunter, who was known to collect armor from fallen adversaries. Biography Early Life Similarly to most other Onu-Matoran, "Gatherer" began his life on Spherus Magna, where he aided in the construction of the Great Spirit Robot. Upon its completion, he was placed inside one of the domes of the Matoran Universe, which then departed Spherus Magna. While the island of his original residence after the Great Spirit Robot's completion remains unclear, it is known that he lived amongst a community of Matoran for the majority of his life, acting as a leader of his settlement in the absence of a Turaga. Opposing the expansion of various Dark Hunter enterprises on his home island, "Gatherer" came to lead a resistance effort against the organization, which ultimately resulted in his abduction. Brought to Odina, "Gatherer" was ultimately swayed by The Shadowed One, who explained that the mercenary syndicate represented the misfits of the Matoran Universe; the species that had been neglected, dismissed, or even wiped out by Mata Nui. Believing this cause to be righteous, "Gatherer" came to sympathize with his captor, eventually joining the organization under the codename "Gatherer". Dark Hunters With the League of Six Kingdoms disbanded and with many residents of the Southern Matoran Universe harboring less favorable sentiments towards the Toa as Mata Nui's chosen species, "Gatherer" soon rallied behind The Shadowed One in his bid to unite the warriors of the southern universe into a composite mercenary guild named the Dark Hunters. Once indoctrinated into the organization, "Gatherer" became the test subject in a number of experiments intended to elevate him beyond the limitations of his Matoran form. Enhanced as a result, "Gatherer" developed beyond the reliance upon Kanohi, nutrience and sleep. As an added result, he gained the ability to compel subterranean Rahi into obeying him. 7,000 years ago, "Gatherer" was contracted to apprehend a Toa of Psionics named Varian, alongside Triglax and "Lurker". With Triglax adopting the guide of a Toa of Sonics and infiltrating the local village, "Lurker" was known to have equipped himself with a Hagah Plasma Cannon and attacked the local Toa from afar. Apprehending both Toa Norik and Varian in the ensuing battle, Triglax would ultimately reveal himself and betray the Toa of Psionics, who promptly surrendered herself in exchanged for Norik's survival. Having completed the assignment successfully, "Gatherer" came to earn The Shadowed One's favor. As the Dark Hunters began to rise in prominence after several early assassination attempts, "Gatherer" proved himself an especially formidable operative despite his initial reservations. Frequently, "Gatherer" would be tasked with missions that demanded him to eliminate or transgress certain Toa, the general sentiment being that Toa represented a law that was unjust. During this time, "Gatherer" would witness the recruitment of "Lurker", Sentrakh, Lariska, and "Eliminator", and began to collect armor from vanquished foes, adding them to his own arsenal as victory trophies. In the months immediately succeeding the Great Cataclysm, "Gatherer" would sustain an injury whilst on an assignment, preventing him from collecting any bounties for a period of time. After a less than sufficient period of recovery and feeling that he had overstayed his welcome in the Odina medical chambers, "Gatherer" traveled to the Eastern Isles to collect a bounty placed on a local Toa of Fire. Confronting the Toa in a geyser field, "Gatherer" soon found himself outclassed and was forced to take shelter behind a number of rocks, dodging lethal fireballs. Unable to conduct his usual research owing to a corrupted data file, "Gatherer" spent the majority of the battle in a state of uncharacteristic clumsiness, getting struck in the face by a geyser and even striking the Toa with a Poison Removal Kanoka. Eventually determining that the Toa was using a Mask of Possibilities, "Gatherer" feinted by triggering a small rockslide, drawing the attention of the Toa and misdirecting his focus so as to create an opening for him to deal a lethal blow. Impaling the Toa, "Gatherer" retrieved several pieces of his adversary's armor and brought his Kanohi back to Odina as evidence that the bounty had been fulfilled. By the onset of the Dark Times, the total Dark Hunter population had begun to see drastic increase in size, with members of the organization growing more experienced and with The Shadowed One constantly searching for new potential in his ranks. With Mata Nui now distinctly absent and The Shadowed One's subconscious goal achieved by the onset of the Dark Times, the leader of the Dark Hunters took drastic military action against the Brotherhood of Makuta, placing "Gatherer" in the front lines of numerous Dark Hunter offensives, devising strategies to ambush entire Rahkshi squadrons and inconvenience numerous members of the Makuta species. With the Matoran Universe running on auxiliary power and the Brotherhood of Makuta now in a prime position of power, "Gatherer" spent the majority of the Dark Times engaged in espionage operations. Reign of Shadows After Makuta Teridax took control of the Matoran Universe and announced the success of his plan, "Gatherer" was forced to abandon his activities and seek shelter, with the Dark Hunters branded as enemies of the Makuta's new world order. While initially welcoming of Mata Nui's downfall, "Gatherer" soon came to realize that the Matoran Universe was no better off under Teridax's rule. With the Dark Hunters scattered and with pockets of resistance emerging across the domes of the Great Spirit Robot, "Gatherer" emerged from hiding and joined the resistance forces, begrudgingly choosing to ally himself with Toa. Along with other resistance members, he would later journey south of Metru Nui, where he united with the disgruntled masses to fend off the Rahkshi army amassing in the Southern Island Chain. Once the Matoran Universe successfully landed on Bara Magna, "Gatherer" and his compatriots emerged onto the surface of the planet, where they allied with the Glatorian and Agori to fend off Makuta's Rahkshi, Skakdi, and Skrall forces. Fighting alongside the Toa for the duration of the conflict, "Gatherer" was relieved from battle with the Rahkshi with aid from Toa Tahu, who used the Golden Armor to vaporize the Rahkshi army. Mata Nui was then able to complete his mission of reforming Spherus Magna from Bara Magna, Bota Magna and Aqua Magna. Spherus Magna Remaining in a stasis under the care of Dark Hunter scientists for roughly 400 years, "Conjurer" was evacuated to the southern Matoran Universe prior to the Battle of Bara Magna. With the Rahkshi army vaporized, Mata Nui was then able to complete his mission of reforming Spherus Magna from Bara Magna, Bota Magna and Aqua Magna before combining his powers with the Kanohi Ignika in order to restore Spherus Magna to its past state. In the process, all beings affected by mutations and ailments were cured, awakening "Conjurer" from his coma. Disorientated, he joined the mass exodus to escape the Matoran Universe. In the first year of Spherus Magna's reformation, "Conjurer" once again allied himself with The Shadowed One in his new mercenary guild. Welcoming Skrall, Bone Hunters, and other residents of Bara Magna into their ranks, this new faction gradually because to claim a major foothold on the planet. Abilities and Traits As an Onu-Matoran, "Gatherer" originally possessed a minuscule degree of control over the elemental discipline of Earth, though he could not access Elemental Powers or utilize Kanohi. Additionally, he was considerably stronger than most other types of Matoran and possessed limited night-vision capabilities. Subjected to an untested Dark Hunter laboratory experiment, "Gatherer" would later gain a number of unnatural capabilities, notably developing beyond the reliance on sustenance, sleep or Kanohi and finding his body transforming into a colossal new form. Moreover, "Gatherer" proved capable of commanding several subterranean Rahi species, such as Archives Moles and Blade Burrowers. Characterized by his ritual of claiming armor from vanquished adversaries, "Gatherer" was known to add scraps of armor to his own form, rebuilding himself into an armored colossus and hiding his mutated Matoran form. "Gatherer" also came to harbor an intense jealousy towards species capable of using Kanohi. Several years into his career, he attempted to collect an entire set of Elemental Kanohi, often hunting down Toa who bore Elemental Masks forged from Toa Disks. Trivia *"Gatherer" was created for an independent building contest by Sam Winfield before being retroactively accepted as a member of the Dark Hunters by Greg Farshtey. Appearances *''War Trophies'' Category:Dark Hunters